Due to fraud and violence during last month’s election in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, three ministries and four governors have been declared ineligible.
They are among the eighty-two candidates who the electoral authority has barred from running in the local, provincial, and legislative elections.
However, it made no mention of the recent presidential election, which resulted in a resounding victory for President Félix Tshisekedi’s reelection.
The opposition has demanded a repeat, labeling the entire election process as a “sham.”
In response to the electoral commission’s statement, eight out of the eighteen opposition candidates declared that it had now “confessed to the fraud.”
“By what magic… only the legislative elections were corrupted and not the presidential one,” questioned Martin Fayulu, who finished third in the presidential contest.
Just one candidate has challenged the poll in court. The big ones, who have not disclosed any information, say they do not trust the courts and have instead urged the populace to fight electoral fraud.
The election on December 20, 2023 was plagued by numerous logistical issues. In several regions of the large nation, it had to be prolonged to an unforeseen second day.
According to a group of observers, almost two thirds of polling places opened late, and 30% of voting machines were broken on election day.
Before they could cast their ballots, millions of people had to wait for hours. Many went home after giving up.The election commission declared in their announcement that the 82 candidates were disqualified because they had engaged in fraud, corruption, acts of equipment vandalism and violence directed towards voters and election officials.
Mr. Ngobila’s supporters have protested in the streets over what they see as his disqualification for political reasons.
Ministers have not yet responded, but President Tshisekedi’s party has stated that it is severing ties with the 12 members who were blacklisted.
Every vote cast for any of the 82 candidates has been disregarded. Only the outcome of the presidential race has been made public thus far; the results of the elections they were running in have not yet been published.
In all, nearly 100,000 candidates ran in the December 20, 2023 elections.
Additionally, the commission declared that two of the 182 constituencies in the nation will not hold elections.
Due to the presence of armed organizations in the mineral-rich region, voting was completely prohibited in two more eastern areas and in one western area.
Election chief Denis Kadima has already said that the presidential outcome represented the desire of the Congolese people in spite of the issues.
With 73% of the vote, Mr. Tshisekedi, 60, was re-elected to a second term. Moise Katumbi, a mining billionaire and former regional governor, was his closest opponent, receiving 18% of the vote. Former oil executive Mr. Fayulu received five percent. Official participation was only 43%.
The Constitutional Court’s confirmation of the results would mean that President Tshisekedi will take office for a second term on  January 20, 2024.